The Collection

The Feuerle Collection is a new private art museum in Berlin Kreuzberg dedicated to Désiré Feuerle’s collection which juxtaposes international contemporary artists with Imperial Chinese furniture and Southeast Asian sculptures.

Located in a former Second World War telecommunications bunker renovated by the British architect John Pawson, the museum encourages a conversation between different periods and cultures offering an alternative perception of ancient art and creates a new perspective on the works, leading viewers through a synesthetic experience.

The collection brings together international contemporary art, Imperial Chinese lacquer and stone furniture, Chinese wood and stone Scholar Furniture from the Han Dynasty to Qing Dynasty, from 200 BC to the 18th century, and Khmer sculptures from the 7th to the 13th century.

The visitor enters into a sophisticated and sensual world that puts these refined cultures and elegant pieces into a new light.

Désiré Feuerle, who comes from a contemporary art background, owned a gallery in the nineties in Cologne, Germany, where he pioneered juxtaposing ancient art with contemporary and modern art, as well as re-looking at antiques from a contemporary perspective.

A visit to The Feuerle Collection can be arranged by appointment only. If you are interested in booking a visit, please follow this link to our online booking system.

Please note that a visit to The Feuerle Collection is suitable only for adults and children aged 16 and over. The Feuerle Collection doesn’t grant admittance to children under 16 years of age. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.

“I find beauty whether in the first century or in the twenty-first century”
Désiré Feuerle

"Torus", Anish Kapoor, 2002

“To me, all these pieces of furniture are sculptures”
Désiré Feuerle

Imperial Chinese Chair, Gift to the Emperor from the Court, Early Qing Dinasty, 17th Century

“To the modern eye Khmer sculpture seems to present simplified form, arising out of a vision that links modernity with an ancient, perhaps even archaic, past. One imagines a link that stretches directly up to Brancusi and beyond.”
Anish Kapoor

Female Divinity, Khmer, Koh Ker, 10th Century

ENJOY THE INCENSE CEREMONY LIKE THE CHINESE EMPERORS

As one of China’s oldest traditions, dating back over 2,000 years, the practice of the art of incense is a spiritual discipline once reserved for scholars and high monks, Emperors and
dignitaries of the court.

The Feuerle Collection is the first art museum to present the theme of Chinese incense culture and the only place in the world where the incense ceremony is introduced as an artistic practice,part of a curatorial work in dialogue with, and surrounded by, ancient and contemporary art.
The ceremony involves the use of selected rare incense, such as Green Qinan, Bhutan Qinan and Hainan Agarwood. within a ritual exploring the relationship between the scents, the senses, the human spirit and nature, revealing the high level of
sophistication to which Chinese culture arrived.

Please note that the entrance to the Incense Room is not part of the regular accompanied visit to The Feuerle Collection. The Feuerle Incense Ceremony has to be booked in advance.

Yoga and Meditation

The Feuerle Collection is pleased to announce the first yoga and
meditation sessions to be held on a regular basis in an art institution in Berlin.

The yoga and meditation sessions will be held by a Yoga Master and a Meditation Master in the collection’s exhibition space, between the art pieces, opened exclusively, out of the regular visiting hours, every week, on Fridays, at 9:00 AM.

Yoga and Meditation will complete the range of activities to be regularly offered by the institution in its sensual and peaceful exhibition space. The visitors will be offered the chance to concentrate on breathing, following the advice of a yoga teacher and a meditation teacher, in order to enhance the perception of their own bodily presence in the space and to reach higher levels of consciousness in their spirit.

Corresponding to the total artwork’s principles of Désiré Feuerle’s collection, and in order to initiate the practice of yoga in its space, The Feuerle Collection has asked two highly qualified yoga teachers to create special yoga class units to be regularly offered at The Feuerle Collection.

Caroline Lindner-Endres and Bastian Schlickeisen, have a very long experience in practicing and teaching respectively classical Vinyasa Flow Style, and yoga with contemporary enhancements of the modern postural yoga.

Bastian Schlickeisen, will hold the special yoga unit on the upcoming Friday at The Feuerle Collection.

Bringing together different influences, the focus of the yoga sessions will be to transmit both aspects of Yin and Yang, in order to reach a peaceful level of quietness in the middle of the experience of the exhibition.

Next session is held on FRIDAY, 17 MAY at 9:00AM. To reserve a spot and for more information, please contact us at info@thefeuerlecollection.org.

Duration: 75 min.

The Feuerle Collection provides the participants with yoga mats

Room temperature 19°c.
Please wear warm clothes for the beginning of the session

Lesson languages: English / German

Fee for a yoga session: 48€, including a visit to the collection

Limited number of participants possible, please book in advance

The Building

6350 square meter exhibition space in a former telecommunications bunker from the Second World War.

The architect John Pawson, a master in minimalist architecture, known for his serene and sensitive approach to existing buildings, has worked on the rehabilitation of the building and on the transformation into a museum.

Press Quotes

“The effect is one of rich historical layering, with sensitive hanging and placement decisions inviting unusual comparisons between different forms and eras. The bunker setting offers the perfect foil for the exhibits. Renovation by British architect John Pawson, known for his minimalist interventions, has cleaned up but not fundamentally altered the interior concrete walls of the bunker – artfully placed stalactites, water-stains, graffiti and holes remain. Pristine white walls have been sparingly introduced on the ground floor, with mirrored walls on the lower ground floor. The monumentality and historical markings of the space live on, but the atmosphere is changed, by the lightest of touches, from one of wartime paranoia to one of peaceful contemplation.“
– Apollo Magazine, 28 April 2016

“The chicane at the entrance that once acted as a bomb shield is now a passage leading to a unique experience. Starting from the basement, one enters the Sound Room to a background of minimalist tones and silences created by American composer John Cage. Until you enter the vast main exhibition room there is no natural light and the place is left in near darkness, forcing you to readjust all your senses to negotiate the space. Your eyes are then attracted to the ingeniously curated spotlights and centuries-old stone and wood sculptures from the Khmer Empire that seem to appear from nowhere.“
– Wallpaper Magazine, 6 May 2016

“Spaced out generously, each work sat on its own pedestal creating a feeling of totalized preciousness. Stone, bronze, and wood Khmer sculptures from the 7th to 13th centuries came to life as their carefully carved figures were amplified by the imposing shadows they cast across the bare floor. Looking up at the lights, one could make out small stalagmites dripping down — a reminder of the space’s underground location.“
– Blouin Artinfo, 20 May 2016

Visit the collection

A visit to The Feuerle Collection can be arranged by appointment only. If you are interested in booking a visit, please follow the link to our online booking system below.

Please note that a visit to The Feuerle Collection is suitable only for adults and children aged 16 and over. The Feuerle Collection doesn’t grant admittance to children under 16 years of age. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.

The admission for The Feuerle Collection is €18. Reduced ticket for students (16-26 years old) and people with disabilities is €11.